Yield, the percentage of admitted candidates who decide to accept an offer of admission, is considered a measure of a school's competitiveness. Harvard's yield is again, by a wide margin, the highest of the nation's selective colleges. When the final figures are available, the yield could go even higher; currently it is 79.7 percent, just above last year's yield of 79.1 percent.

The 2,055 students admitted to the Class of 2003 were selected from a pool of 18,161 applicants. For the eighth time in nine years, applications for admission to Harvard and Radcliffe have risen. Last year, 16,819 students applied for the 1,650 places in the entering class.

The very high yield means that the Class of 2003 is now full, and it will probably be impossible to admit anyone from the waiting list.

"We are extremely pleased that the College has again attracted so many extraordinarily talented students," said William R. Fitzsimmons, Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid. "A major factor in these excellent results has been our new financial aid program, announced in September by Dean Jeremy Knowles. The goal of that program was to put Harvard within the financial reach of unusually talented students from all backgrounds, and our exceptional yield is one measure of the new program's success."

The new financial aid program gives scholarship students considerable freedom and flexibility, offering an additional $2,000 per year in need-based grants to reduce loan and/or job expectations. In addition, students are now allowed to use the full amount of scholarships won from non-Harvard sources to reduce further or even eliminate loan and job requirements. These new benefits were extended not just to prospective students but to all current undergraduates. Nearly 2,000 undergraduates receiving outside awards have been able to use those awards to reduce their loan and job requirements. And more than 150 have won so much in outside scholarships that they have eliminated the annual term-time work and loan requirements completely. Over four years such students stand to save $25,000 or more in loan and work expectations.

James S. Miller, director of financial aid, reported that more families of admitted students than ever before have contacted his office to ask about financial aid opportunities. "Our current students, the first beneficiaries of the program, have spoken with prospective students about the additional time students now have to pursue their academic and extracurricular opportunities, as well as the option of reducing loan requirements. Students appreciate particularly that their graduate school and career plans will not be encumbered by loan debt thanks to the new program." Miller added, "Our policy of need-blind admissions combined with need-based aid is the foundation on which our recruitment program rests. It remains the critical ingredient in assembling student bodies of unsurpassed excellence."

Approximately 47 percent of undergraduates this year will receive scholarship support. Over $54 million will be devoted to scholarship aid, 93 percent of which comes from University resources. About two-thirds of undergraduates will be eligible for some form of financial aid. The average annual grant will be larger that $17,000 with a total aid package (including scholarships and jobs) of more than $22,000.

Miller said the College Access Plan continues to ensure that students from all economic backgrounds, including low- and middle- income families, will have access to a Harvard education. The plan offers a wide range of scholarships, loans, jobs, and payment options, including the opportunity to pre-pay tuition at current rates or to extend payments for up to 15 years.

"Other forms of financial assistance, such as the Faculty Aid Program and the Harvard College Research Program, enable undergraduates to pursue special research interests in close partnerships with faculty members," he said. Miller reports that his office expects to distribute more than $90 million of financial aid next year to undergraduate students in the form of scholarships, loans, and jobs.

"Forty-seven percent of the Class of 2003 are female, and we are gratified to see that years of special outreach efforts, including the use of the College Board Search Service, are succeeding," said Marlyn McGrath Lewis, director of admissions. She noted also that areas of academic interest remain much the same as those of the Class of 2002. The humanities led the way, with nearly 26 percent of the class planning to concentrate in this area. Twenty-four percent list biological sciences as their prospective area of concentration. Twenty-three percent lean toward the social sciences and over 8 percent are interested in the physical sciences, 11 percent in engineering and computer science, 6 percent in math, and 1 percent are undecided.

The Class of 2003 seems certain to continue Harvard's tradition of significant non-academic accomplishments. The extracurricular activity cited by the most students as a serious focus of their attention is music, in which over 30 percent of incoming students plan to be involved, followed by drama, dance, and other arts ‹ in which over 20 percent are interested. Close to 20 percent expect to engage in social service projects, and 17 percent in journalism. Over 60 percent of the Class plans to participate in athletics at some level.

Asian Americans comprise over 17 percent of the matriculants; African Americans, 8 percent; Hispanic Americans, over 3 percent; Mexican Americans, 3 percent; Puerto Ricans, 1.5 percent; and Native Americans, 0.5 percent. "This year's admitted group is wonderfully talented, and we are very pleased with the results of our recruitment efforts for the Class of 2003," said Director of Undergraduate Minority Recruiting Roger Banks.

In addition to a successful visiting program on April 23 to 26, attended by well over a thousand admitted students, many other recruitment efforts contributed to this year's excellent yield. Alumnae and alumni hosted local receptions throughout the United States and abroad. They also called and wrote to students admitted from their local areas.

Members of the teaching faculty telephoned admitted students, served on several panels during the visiting weekend, and were an invaluable source of advice for prospective students as they made their final college choices.

"Faculty members have been an integral part of the recruitment and selection process for the Class of 2003," Fitzsimmons continued. "Their accessibility throughout the year to prospective applicants helps to ensure the future strength of the College."

"We are particularly grateful to our faculty committee, and this year they were called upon more than ever before to assist in the difficult task of making the final admissions decisions," said Lewis. Members of the faculty serving on the admissions committee are Gary Feldman, Patrick Ford, Benedict Gross, J. Woodland Hastings, Richard Holm, Harry Lewis, Wilfried Schmid, Werner Sollors, Nancy Sommers, Frans Spaepen, William Todd, Helen Vendler, and Robert Woollacott.